Life-Altering Relationship in Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

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“We cannot change the past. All we can do is change the way we allow the past to affect our present and future.” – Springwolf. In the novel Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, Pip encounters many significant and life-altering relationships that teach him that a meaningful life does not always mean being wealthy or highly educated; it is about being genuine and humble. Pip encounters many interesting relationships throughout his childhood and adolescence. One of the most profound and impacting of those relationships is the one Pip shares with his brother-in-law, Joe. Joe single-handedly taught Pip the meaning of a fulfilling lifestyle. Pip’s eyes were opened by Joe when Joe forgave a convict for stealing from his home. Joe proclaimed that no man, no matter how scarce of pride or importance that man may be, should ever have to go without the necessities of life. From this, Pip realized that in the end, we are made out of muscles and bones, and a person’s accomplishments, or lack thereof, do not make them any more or less of a human than the rest of the world. This outlook benefitted Pip numerous times when he chose to be benevolent to those around him, even those who were undeserving. One of these occurrences was when Pip took in Magwitch and provided assistance for his many needs. Without Joe portraying to Pip the importance of equality and kind-heartedness, Pip would have conjured up very different solutions to his abundant and arduous predicaments. Joe also provided Pip with the knowledge of how essential true and honest friendship is. Pip did not procure many profound and meaningful friendships in his life but, with Joe’s assistance, Pip realized that money and business deals would come and go often, but friendship was a sac... ... middle of paper ... ...lth almost never means being abundant in happiness. She also brought Pip to the realization that if a love is true, he will not have to change his morals or a single one of his goals to achieve it. Pip was taught countless lessons from the relationships that occurred early in his life that, after time, led him to the discovery of his true self. He was taught, directly and indirectly, an abundance of life-lessons that helped portray to him that he was and always will be the sole source of his happiness. The characters that Pip associated with throughout his life taught him that it is not the size of your income, or the height of your status that forms who you are in your life; it is whether or not you are aware that good times and bad times are both ever-present factors in life, and whether or not you are strong enough to be humble that you have any time at all.

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